Alazne Lumihee and the Gathering Dark
by Not-A-Nott2017
Summary: Nineteen years after the Second Wizarding War, all is at peace, and a young witch born to a Muggle man and the squib daughter of the Nott family has grown up in a safe world, though sheltered by her mother. However, not long after she receives her acceptance letter to Hogwarts , her uncle appears in her life with a plan and offer that are darker than they seem...
1. Chapter 1: The Girl Who Shone

Mr. and Mrs. Lumihee lived in a small apartment in Doleville, a crowded little village that seemed to always be a little darker than it had seemed from the roads coming up to it, and if asked they would say their lives were perfectly normal, despite popular opinion. Neighbors said that their house seemed even darker than the rest of the town and that they, particularly Mrs. Lumihee, always seemed up to something suspicious. However, the couple would argue there was nothing at all to be suspicious about.

Mr. Lumihee worked as an accountant not far from their home and usually came home either happy to complain about work or pleasantly buzzed from a tavern he passed on the way home. He was a stocky man who seemed to have the potential to be very happy doing work outdoors somewhere, though he was a bit too uptight for what he was built for and wore suits and his mousey brown hair slicked back even on weekends. Mrs. Lumihee, on the other hand, rarely left the home and many people hardly had any memories of what she looked like at all. One of the few things that neighbors marked as out of place was that they had no children, but that would change soon, since they were due for their first child any day.

Even though Mr. Lumihee was happily typical in every manner, the neighbors were right to be suspicious of his wife. She lived every day wishing for a life she never had, and even though she seemed normal, she had a secret she hoped no one would ever discover. Especially Mr. Lumihee, who prided himself on living a very average life. She couldn't bear it if he found out about her life as a Nott, her family before she had been left at an orphanage as a child, or if anyone from the world that had shunned her found her living in Doleville. She shuddered to think what anyone that knew the Notts would say if they saw how she lived now. Sometimes when she was home alone she thought that by now she might even have a nephew, and her baby would have a cousin to play with, but she shook thoughts like that away when they came. That child would only be as cruel to her baby as children had been to her, and she didn't want her baby having to deal with pain like that.

One particularly gloomy Monday, Mrs. Lumihee awoke just before her husband to find the occasional stirring in her belly had gotten more frequent and hummed and pet it as if to sooth the child within, her eyes closed contently. Mr. Lumihee woke up soon after and picked out a suit for work, humming a conflicting song over her lullaby.

Neither of them noticed the light silver sparks that seemed to appear wherever Mrs. Lumihee pet her stomach.

By eight o'clock, Mr. Lumihee bent to kiss both his wife and her belly goodbye, chuckling a little when he felt a foot kick his cheek, but stopped when heard what distinctly sounded like firecrackers going off from within. He seemed stunned for a second, as if he wasn't sure if he had really heard it, but when he listened again he only heard the soft sounds of the baby shifting inside his wife's womb.

"Everything alright, dear?" asked Mrs. Lumihee in her soft voice.

"Yes...just listening to the baby, sweetness," he replied, moving back and thinking he could hear a soft humming like something electrical being turned on. However he shook the thought from his mind and went to work, thinking about the first account he would have to deal with and contemplating what drink he would grab on the way home.

Mrs. Lumihee, left to her own devices, steadily became more aware of how close the baby's time was getting. As she ate breakfast she began burping up what looked like the same sparks that her stomach had produced earlier at her touch, too close to her mouth for her to notice anything more than an annoying tingling around her lips, though the more she ate the more vibrant the sparks looked. In fact if anyone had happened to pass by the window that morning, they would have seen what appeared to be Mrs. Lumihee impersonating a firecracker and getting better and better at it as she tried, but she was soon finished and moved on to what she had to do that day.

The only activities Mrs. Lumihee was allowed to do were ones that omitted any bending or vigorous movement, so she was stuck with washing the dishes and dusting until the baby was born. Which was perfectly fine with her. It meant Mr. Lumihee wasn't so critical of her cleaning and had to do to whatever was bothering him himself. As she worked, her back to the window, she didn't notice the owl that flew past and dropped a letter at her doorstep; the neighbor's children did though, and let out several excited cries and pointed to the bird as it flew off. Mrs. Lumihee, on the other hand, had a normal morning and was in a very good mood considering she was starting to get sharp pains every so often. That is, until she decided to grab some ice cream from the shop down the street.

"Mrs. Lumihee! Mrs. Lumihee! You got mail!" one of the neighbor's children shouted, a rosy cheeked girl about three.

"Don't be silly, dear, he shouldn't be here for hours," Mrs. Lumihee chastised gently, making her waddling way to her car.

"It wasn't the mailmain," said the other child, a towheaded girl of six. "A bird brought it."

Mrs. Lumihee stopped dead, fear overcoming her. She looked to the children as if she wanted to say something to them, but instead hurried back inside as fast as she could, pushing the letter in with her with her foot.

She cried out the window to the now calling children to forget about the letter and had almost opened it before she seemed to change her mind. She brought it to her room instead and sat with it a moment, thinking…she was being silly. There must have been a mistake bringing her this letter. Come to think of it, the children hadn't said what bird had brought it; it could be one of the pigeons a man down the street had been trying to train. There was no reason to write to her. None at all. And there was no point in even looking at the thing and upsetting herself, especially with the baby so close…but all the same, if it was from one of them…

She found it harder to move from her bed that afternoon and the pains got still worse, and she had only just put the letter back in her hiding place under the mattress when her husband arrived from work. She was determined not to mention it to him.

Mr. Lumihee had had a lovely, average day. He was in a good enough mood to even order take out, since Mrs. Lumihee hadn't cooked dinner, and ate with her in bed as he talked about how Mr. Know-Nothing had fouled up a client's account and how he had met an old friend at the bar. Mrs. Lumihee tried to act normally and smile or laugh lightly at the right parts.

When he returned from the kitchen again the pains had gotten nearly unbearable, and she knew that her time had come when he jumped back and asked how the bed had gotten wet. He went to get the car keys, but after several attempts to get her standing she knew it was no use. She'd have to say something to him. She swallowed nervously. "Er—Damien, dear—I don't think I can make it to the hospital."

As expected, Mr. Lumihee looked frustrated and angry. Normally she went along with whatever he wanted.

"What? Why?" he asked sharply.

"Well I can't really get up," Mrs. Lumihee mumbled, "and I can feel her starting to shift around more in there…"

"So?" snapped Mr. Lumihee.

"Well I'm working it out and…if we try to get there…I'll probably end up having her on the car seat."

Mr. Lumihee's jaw had gotten very stiff looking. He loved his car more than anything, and wouldn't dare to risk getting anything birth related in the passenger's seat. "Alright…I suppose it can't be helped."

"Right, dear…"

Mr. Lumihee got some towels and warm water and Mrs. Lumihee got herself settled, now clearly able to see her belly glowing like she had swallowed a flashlight. She was grateful when it stopped before her husband returned, but as soon as she started pushing, there was no way to hide the light that shone off of the child bit by bit as she was born. By the time Mrs. Lumihee was holding the baby she was shining like the sun, and when the infant stopped crying and opened her eyes small stars burst forth from her dark eyes like fireworks.

"What in God's name is wrong with her?!" Mr. Lumihee shouted, pale as a ghost.

Mrs. Lumihee, however, was crying tears of joy. "Nothing, she…she's perfect, Damien! She's more than perfect! Our little baby is a witch!"

"What on Earth are you talking about, Mallory?!"

"She's just born and already she's magic…she's so beautiful…!"

"She's a freak, that's what she is! Why aren't you concerned?!"

"Oh Damien, don't you see? Our baby is a witch, a member of the magical world…our baby is special and wonderful and unique! Isn't it wonderful?!"

"…I need a drink," Mr. Lumihee murmured. He turned on his heel and soon a door slam and the revving of his car's engine signaled his departure.

It seemed unnoticed by Mrs. Lumihee, who lay silent and happy with her shining daughter as she blinked tears from her eyes. The baby simply looked at her and cooed until she fell into a light sleep. The glow finally faded and she looked like any other baby, not knowing she was special or wonderful or unique. Her mother watched too, not knowing she would realize hours later that her husband wasn't returning, nor that she would spend the next few weeks inconsolable save for her sweet and special baby…all she knew was at that very moment, she was the happiest she had been since she was a child, and she whispered to the sleeping baby, "My little Alazne...the girl who shone."


	2. Chapter 2: The Vanishing Net

Over ten years after the birth of Alazne Lumihee, not much had changed about Doleville. The town still appeared darker than the countryside around it, the sky still seemed as gloomy as ever, and the neighbors were still suspicious of the Lumihee home for reasons they couldn't quite put their fingers on. The house was no longer darker than the rest of the town, in fact if anything it was brighter, and the woman inside now had a child of her own like all the other respectable women in town…but there were some things that didn't quite add up. First of all, just after the little girl was born, Mr. Lumihee had up and left town without even bothering to come back for his things. His friends had asked around to see what had happened, as well as the nosier of their neighbors, but he refused to even acknowledge he even had a wife anymore, let alone a daughter. Then there was the change in the house itself, now bright and welcoming when before it would make them feel colder just to come near it. But if they had to put their finger on it, almost everyone would say what made them feel a little uneasy about the Lumihees would be Alazne herself. People who had come to the door, as well as the curious children who spied through the windows, saw plenty of pictures of the girl. At first it had just been pictures of a mousey haired baby in different colored dresses or bonnets, all taken indoors—but Alazne was no longer a baby, and now the photographs showed a short pale girl riding a big wheel down the hall, reading by the upstairs window, in masked costume on Halloween, and being hugged and kissed by a smiling Mrs. Lumihee. Yet the girl in question had rarely been seen in the flesh by anyone in town, and only the pictures showed any signs at all that Mrs. Lumihee didn't live alone in her little apartment.

Alazne Lumihee was there though, asleep for the moment, but she wouldn't be for long. Her mother was awake, and she rarely let her daughter sleep in on weekdays.

"Alazne! Time to wake up!"

Alazne jumped, startled. Her mother knocked again.

"Alazne, I mean it!" she called. Alazne heard her walk next door to her room and the faint sounds of movement as she sat up, trying to remember what she had been dreaming. It had been so strange. There was this tall, weedy looking man in it, and she had a funny feeling they'd met before…

Before she could think too much about it, her mother was back at the door.

"Are you up yet?" she asked.

"Almost, Mummy…" said Alazne.

"Well get a move on, breakfast is nearly ready. We're having bacon and eggs today."

Alazne made a little noise of approval, wondering what the occasion was. It wasn't often they had such a nice breakfast. Alazne rolled out of bed and started looking for her pants. She found them half-kicked under the bed and pulled them on over her shorts. She tended to wear shorts to bed a lot since it was a bit stuffy on the second floor, being it was right under the attic, so she ended up wearing boxer shorts under her jeans most of the time.

When she was dressed she hurried down the stairs to the kitchen and was surprised to find a present siting on it. It looked like it was some kind of special occasion after all, since she knew how tight money got most of the time. Though what exactly the occasion was escaped Alazne, since it was the start of summer and her birthday wasn't for another two months—unless her mother had stumbled on some extra money somehow. Mrs. Lumihee seemed to like spending whatever extra money she had on her daughter, and she did sometimes get some by doing extra work. Her mother didn't look it, but she was a very hard worker. Alazne was happy she took after her.

Maybe it was because her mother didn't let her go out very much, but Alazne had always been very small for her age, and very pale, as if she had been given a good fright. She looked even smaller and paler than she really was too because most of her clothes were from second-hand stores, and were all dark colors like black or grey. Alazne had a little face, pierced ears, long, mousey brown hair, and overall looked a little like a field mouse. She also wore little half-moon glasses and her hair up in a ponytail when she read—which was often. The only thing she really liked about how she looked was her eyes, which were nearly black with flecks of gold that made them look like the night sky. She remembered when she was really young she asked her mother if they ran in the family, and it was the first time she could remember her mother getting upset with her.

"It doesn't matter, you'll never meet them," she had said. "So please don't mention them again."

That was one of the few rules her mother had—Don't ask about the family.

Her mother entered the room as she was inspecting the present.

"No peaking," she warned, seeming a little eager herself.

Mrs. Lumihee never liked missing her daughter's face when she was happy about something. She always tried to surprise her with little things she knew she'd like just for that reason, except for one thing she asked for every few days—to go play with the other children.

Alazne had moved on to watching her mother instead by the time breakfast was set in front of her. She looked quite a bit like her mother. She was thin and weedy, in fact she looked very fragile, with a small face like her daughter, a small stature, small black eyes that always looked sad even when she was smiling, and long black hair that was nearly to the small of her back. People often said her mother looked like some sort of ghost-like creature—Alazne usually countered that her mom looked like an angel. That always made her mother smile, but Alazne really meant it.

She started eating with her eyes on her plate, which was hard considering all she wanted was to tear open her present. Her mother, meanwhile, seemed to be just as impatient.

"You know what, Mousey," she said, using her nickname affectionately, "you can open it while you eat."

"No, that's okay Mummy, I'll open it after," said Alazne, though she started wolfing down her food so she could open it sooner. Whatever it was must be good if her mother was so impatient.

Her mother obviously noticed her speed up though, because she said gently, "Now don't choke, sweetheart, it'll be there when you finish. Besides, it's your favorite."

Alazne slowed down obediently. It was harder than it looked. Finally she finished and asked eagerly, "so…can I…?"

"Yes you can, sweetheart," said Mrs. Lumihee.

"Yes!" Alazne grabbed the present and shook it gently. "I wonder what it is?"

Mrs. Lumihee chuckled.

"You won't know until you open it. Go ahead, Mousey!" She ruffled her daughter's hair.

As Alazne tore the package open the doorbell rang and Mrs. Lumihee had to go and answer it, just after she caught a look at the grin on Alazne's face as she revealed the cover of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander. She was just starting on the first chapter when Mrs. Lumihee came back from the front room, looking both upset and worried.

"It's for you, Alazne," she said. "The little girl from next door wants to ask you something."

Alazne's heart leapt in her chest. Every time she asked to go out and play with the children in the countryside or watch television at their house or take a ride to the city to find something to do, her mother always refused. She was worried she might do something that might get her picked on or that she would lose control and do something by accident. It was the only thing that ever made her upset with her mother. She tried very hard to keep her emotions in check while she was out, and she never would do anything to hurt or scare the other children if she could help it.

"Did she say what?" said Alazne, looking towards the door eagerly. She knew she should try and keep nonchalant about it in order to keep her mother from worrying more, but it wasn't easy when she reminded herself it was the first time any child had actively sought her out.

"No, you'll just have to find out yourself," Mrs. Lumihee replied.

Alazne needed no further persuading, and eagerly raced to the door to find the rosy cheeked girl from next door, who was a few years older than her. She didn't look overly happy to be there, but at least her voice was pleasant enough when she spoke.

"Hey Lumihee, you free?"

The neighbor kids often addressed her like this on the rare occasions they saw her—she was actually pretty sure they didn't know her first name.

"Yes, I'm free, Joanne. Why?"

"I wanna go out to the countryside hunting beasties and mum won't let me go unless I have at least four people with me, but Vivian's sick. My sister's too busy too and I can't find anyone else, so my mom told me to ask you," snipped Joanne in a prissy voice.

"You want me to go?" Alazne said hopefully.

Joanne made a face like she had gotten a bug in her mouth.

"Want is a strong word," she replied.

"But…you're asking me to go, right?" said Alazne.

"Yeah...I guess so," said Joanne slowly, "…if you don't act all weird."

"I won't do anything weird, who said I do weird stuff…?"

Mrs. Lumihee began to gesture wildly out of sight of Joanne—she didn't want to actually embarrass her daughter—and Alazne asked the girl to wait before going over to her.

"Mummy, what's wrong? I can go, can't I?" she asked, giving her mother the most pleading look she could muster.

"I…don't really want you…t-to go, Sunshine," Mrs. Lumihee replied, straining to not be manipulated by her daughter's look and countering it by using her oldest pet name. "What if something happens?"

"Nothing will, Mummy, I promise! I can control myself!" Alazne pleaded. "Oh please Mummy, please let me go! No one ever came and asked for me before!"

Just then Joanne poked her head in—of course her mother stopped gesturing and Alazne stopped giving her the look—and asked, "so are you coming or not?"

Alazne gave her mother the look one last time, mouthing, "please, please, please?" and less than ten minutes later, Alazne, who couldn't believe her luck, was walking into the countryside with Joanne and two brothers named Percy and Seamus for the first time in her life. Her mother hadn't been able to say no to her daughter's pleading. But before they'd left, Mrs. Lumihee had taken her aside.

"Now Alazne," she had said, whispering close to Alazne's ear, "anything happens, anything at all, and you run right home, okay? I mean it. Don't do anything or let yourself get worked up."

"I won't, Mummy," said Alazne, "I can control it. Honest…!"

But she could tell her mother didn't believe her. She never did.

When she was four, Mrs. Lumihee, worried Alazne would go to primary school and make people suspicious with her eyes, went and found special glasses in Diagon Alley that would make the wearer's eyes look a certain color to onlookers. However, they were so big that Alazne felt like an owl in them, and she spent a sleepless night worrying about going to school with those glasses when she liked her eyes just fine how they were (and the glasses gave her a headache to boot). The next day, however, when they went to meet the principal they just stopped working, and she had frightened the man with the sudden change—the color they were supposed to be was blue like her father. Her mother had immediately fled with little Alazne and she had been homeschooled ever since.

Another time, a little boy had been teasing a neighbor's hand-me-down clothes and suddenly found himself in a vibrant orange dress. Worse, the harder he tried to get it off, the uglier and frillier the dress became, until he was standing in an Amish style brown dress with orange puffballs crying for his mother. To Mrs. Lumihee's great relief, no one mentioned Alazne when they discussed the incident, not realizing she had been around when it happened and not at home.

On the other hand, Alazne had almost been discovered when she knocked a large shelf over a few years back, nearly crushing a young man shopping at the store. Alazne had heard the father screaming at his son for crying when he hurt his foot, telling him to act like a man, and in a sudden rush of anger the shelves next to him had found themselves rushing towards him. Luckily no one was hurt, but someone had seen Alazne glaring at the man and shaking with anger and suspicion flared.

But today, nothing was going to go wrong. Alazne had been training herself to keep calm just so she could prove to her mother she could hide her magic, and now she was going to do it and finally be able to go into Doleville and make friends.

It was a very sunny Thursday and the countryside was very inviting. The trees offered plenty of shade, and the other children didn't say anything mean at all. In fact, Percy even offered to share some of the lemon drops he'd brought with him. They weren't bad either, Alazne thought as Seamus and Joanne looked under some bushes for a "beastie" to catch, holding a large net to catch it with when they found one. In fact, Alazne was having one of the best days she'd ever had. She was very careful to walk a polite distance from Joanne and the brothers so that they wouldn't start asking too much about her, which sometimes kids did when she went out since she was such a mystery. They ate there under the trees when they hadn't found anything by lunch time, and when they noticed near the end of eating their lunches she didn't have anything, they gave her the odds and ends their mothers had given them that they hadn't wanted.

She should have known it was going to well.

After lunch, the other three decided it would be a good idea to split up so that they'd have a better chance of finding something. Alazne didn't mind. She was pretty sure there wasn't anything too dangerous around their part of the country. They made a deal that anyone who found something would howl like a dog—especially Seamus, who owned the net—and split up. Alazne kept an eye out as she walked in hopes she would find something first to make the others happy, but mostly she was just happy to be outside. She knew the others wanted to find huge, poisonous spiders or big man-crushing snakes, but she was happy stumbling across a butterfly or a rabbit. The latter, of course, got away before she could call for the others.

Then she stumbled on a large snake that she recognized from one of her reptile books, a Common European Adder. She knew they were poisonous and if startled it would bite—but when she looked it didn't look frightened at all. In fact, it looked almost like it was expecting her.

She moved over a little so that she was in front of the snake, since she had come upon it from the back, and crouched, looking at it curiously. She had never gotten to see a snake outside of her books. She kind of felt jealous of it—it got to wander about and use its special gift by biting people whenever he got mad or scared, while she had to stay cooped up and teach herself to hold her tongue.

The snake let her look at it until slowly, very slowly, rose up as if to strike. Before Alazne could move, worried, its head was level with hers as she crouched before it.

_And it winked._

Alazne moved back a little in surprise. Snakes couldn't wink, she knew they couldn't, but this one definitely had. Then she looked around to see if any of the other three were around. They weren't. So she winked too.

The snake opened its mouth and as clear as day, said to her in a low hissing voice like one would expect a snake to have, "I sssssee you are enviousssss of me?"

Alazne swallowed a little, both nervous of being caught and embarrassed to answer.

"Yeah," she murmured, though she didn't expect the snake to understand, "I can't wander around or use my gift like you."

"Oh," said the snake, "That musssssst be very annoying."

Alazne nodded vigorously.

"I sssssssee you are a witch then?"

Alazne nodded again, replying, "how did you know?"

"Mossssssst humansssss don't notissssss me in a sssssivilized manner. Issssss it nissssss?"

"To be a human? I guess so. I dunno what it's like to be anything else. Is it nice to be a snake?"

"Yesssssss. But I don't know what it'sssss like to be anything elssssss either."

As she smiled at the snake, the snake returning it as best as a snake can return a smile, the sudden swish of a net and a shout made both of them jump. "JOANNE! PERCY! COME HERE, I CAUGHT A SNAKE! LUMIHEE CHARMED IT!"

Out of nowhere Joanne and Percy rushed from the trees as the snake cried out and squirmed under the net, Alazne letting out a sympathetic cry.

"Wait, you're scaring him…!"

"Out of the way, you! We want to see it!" Joanne said, shoving her over. Caught off guard, Alazne fell over and noticed that two newcomers had brought sticks and were jabbing at the snake spitefully, making it call out in pain and bite futilely at the net.

"Stop it! Stop it, you're hurting him! Stop it!" Alazne called, near tears and getting angrier by the minute.

"Oh lighten up, Lumihee! It's nothing but a stupid snake! It's not like it feels anything," Percy replied, laughing as he nearly hit the Adder in the eye.

Alazne felt the hairs rise up on the back of her neck and screamed in rage, "DON'T YOU SAY THAT, YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO HURT HIM JUST 'CAUSE HE'S A SNAKE!"

What came next came so fast no one saw how it happened—one moment Joanne and Percy were poking at the poor Adder while Seamus kept it trapped, the next, they had all leapt back with cries of horror.

Alazne paled and covered her mouth in shame; the net around the Adder had vanished and the snake was now poised to strike. Joanne and Percy brandished their sticks like swords while Seamus looked at the stick that had held his net in shock.

As the snake made a bite for Percy's ankle, Alazne quickly moved forward, saying to it, "no, don't bite them, they could die!"

The three children looked at her in shock but the snake paused in mid strike, Alazne now between it and its former tormentors. It moved back into a relaxed position and bowed its head, saying in a low voice, "fine…senssssss you freed me I'll lisssssssten and sssssspare them a bite….Thankssssss, Sssssnake-Ssssspeaker…" before it fled into the brush.

It took a few minutes for anyone to calm down enough to speak, and when they did, it was Seamus.

"But my net," Seamus managed softly, "where did my net go…?"

Before anyone else could say anything Alazne fled toward home, face red and eyes pricking with tears of shame and embarrassment at losing control. Someone could have gotten hurt if the snake hadn't listened to her. When she got home she clung to her mother and sobbingly explained what had happened, apologizing over and over again.

Mrs. Lumihee was kind enough to wait until Alazne had calmed down before chastising her. She only said, "people always hurt others when they think they're better than them…I know you were only trying to do the right thing. But I hope you know you're not allowed out with them again," before bringing her to her bedroom so she could calm down with her new book.

Alazne lay in her bedroom much later, wishing her mother hadn't come and taken her flashlight away. She liked to read when she wanted to calm down and the new book was a good one. She always loved books from the magical world.

She had lived in Doleville all her life, but as long as she could remember, she wished her mother would let her into the wizarding world she was a part of, even if it meant working with her in one of the houses that employed her. She couldn't remember ever meeting a witch or wizard, but sometimes, when she was half-asleep in her bedroom, she got this strange vision: a weedy, tall man with a cold voice. She guessed it was her father, though she assumed that her father was a Muggle and this man definitely wasn't. Then again, she didn't know anything about her family or the magical world except what her mother told her. She talked about the magical world often enough, but she almost never said anything about her family, and the only photographs in the house were of the two of them.

When she was younger, Alazne had wished her mother wasn't so afraid of people mistreating her, but it had never happened; she was too ashamed and afraid of something to live in the magical world where Alazne could be herself and too afraid to let her be around Muggles, who might see she was different and do something to her. As far ahead as the world had come, her mother said, "people will always be afraid of difference. They fear what they don't understand." Somehow she had a feeling her mom might be right, so she never questioned it…but she had never understood why her mother had refused the few times Alazne had gotten the courage to ask about living in the wizarding world until today. The way those kids had jabbed at the Adder, just because they thought they were stronger and better than him…how would witches and wizards treat her, who knew magic only from books and the times she lost control?

Alazne turned over, tearing up. Except for her mother, she had no one. She was just that weird Lumihee girl in second-hand clothes who read in her granny-glasses…the one that didn't belong with anyone, magic or Muggle.


	3. Chapter 3: Persistent Owl Mail

The incident with the Adder was talked about in Doleville for weeks, and Alazne was forced to stay indoors without any exceptions until the talk died down. By the time it was written off as the overactive imagination of prepubescent children, Alazne's acceptance letter from Hogwarts had come and the reply had already been sent by the same owl, and Alazne had had time to read and memorize every entry in _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_. To her great relief, this was also one of the many books on her reading list.

Of course Alazne was glad that the town had quit whispering about her and trying to get a look at her through the windows again, but there was now no hope for her with the neighborhood children. On the rare occasion she left home unattended to run an errand for her busy mother, Seamus, Percy, and Joanne were hot on her trail, as well as any other kids they could find. Then they would all play their new favorite sport: Lumihee Lashing. It often involved rocks.

So, for the first time, Alazne needed no prompting to keep indoors, reading something or another to try and waste the time until September came, her only salvation from pelted rocks and harsher whispers. She'd finally be among children like her and, for the first time in her life, might have a chance to be herself and make some friends. She'd never even been inside of a normal school. Of course, that had always been something that kids had found very funny.

"You know, new kids usually get christened by shoving their head down the toilet," a boy had once said when she asked what it was like. "If you want, I can give you the experience."

Alazne had said in a very frightened voice, "No thanks," but had ended up with her head down the toilet anyway. It was horribly unpleasant, and she prayed that Hogwarts didn't adopt the custom too.

Around mid-July, Alazne was woken up before her mother could even knock by a particularly unpleasant smell and dressed quickly to go and investigate. She found the kitchen empty, save for a large bowl bubbling on the stove, from which the smell seemed to be coming from. She peered in and saw what appeared to be some sort of mixture of cement, skunk cabbage, and baby food.

"What's this?" she asked Mrs. Lumihee when she returned, most likely from finding her already awake. She seemed a little guilty, which made Alazne nervous, because the look she was giving her was reserved for unpleasant news.

"Breakfast," she said.

Alazne looked in the bowl again, trying to keep the horror she was feeling from being visible.

"Oh," she said, attempting a smile, "it looks…er…tasty."

"Look, I know it's not the best meal," said Mrs. Lumihee gently, "but it's…it's what we can afford. I've been doing mostly wizarding homes lately, with school coming on, and I-"

"It's okay, Mummy," Alazne said immediately, stopping her mid-sentence. "I mean it, it looks tasty. It's fine."

Mrs. Lumihee offered a little smile, eyes wet with gratitude. Alazne sat at the table and tried not to think what the horrible smelling concoction must _taste _like—though she started to practice keeping her face neutral in preparation.

As her mother doled out the mushy grey slop into two bowls and set them at the table, Alazne was interrupted mid-bite by cooing of an owl from the special hatch her mother had gotten a wizard to install for their owl post.

Alazne immediately rose and excused herself as she went to get the mail. The owl was a different from their usual black feathered one that brought _The Daily Prophet_, in fact this one was nearly eagle-like in appearance, and only held one letter as it waited to be tipped. However, it wasn't rare for them to get different owls that belonged to different families, so Alazne carefully took the envelope and offered the bird a dead mouse, which it took before flying off. She had closed the hatch to the attic and started downstairs before actually taking a look at the letter.

It was for her.

Alazne stared at the letter, frozen on the top step of the stairs with her heart pounding excitedly in her chest. With the exception of her acceptance letter, there had never been a letter for her before. They had all been for her mother, usually families responding to her ads in _The Daily Prophet _or the few acquaintances she had. After all, who would write to Alazne? Mrs. Lumihee was raised by Muggles, who sent the occasional card to Alazne with her name misspelt—and she had never even _been_ in any part of the wizarding world. Yet there it was, her name spelt in elegant, formal writing:

Ms. A. Lumihee

The Largest Bedroom

10 Downing Drive

Doleville

The envelope itself looked formal, made out of parchment that was nearly yellow with age, and the address had been written in dark green ink that seemed eerily like blood despite its coloration. There was no return address.

Turning the envelope over curiously, Alazne noticed the envelope had a seal on it to keep it shut; a dark green shield with three black hearts on it, pierced by swords, and a black stripe arched up and back on the bottom. A green snake's head was set above the shield with the bottom under suggested it was in a position to strike, and from the shield and snake came what looked like black and red feathers. The ribbon above it, also green, had the name "Nott" in black lettering.

"Alazne, what's taking so long?" shouted Mrs. Lumihee from the kitchen, making Alazne jump. "That owl trying to get an extra mouse again?"

"No Mummy, I'm coming!" Alazne called, hurrying back and still staring at the strange letter. As her mother ate, she took a bite of the slop to find it had the texture badly mashed potatoes and an indescribably sour taste as she started opening the envelope.

"See, it's not so bad," Mrs. Lumihee said when she heard the light clink of her daughter eating, not looking up yet. "It may take a bit of adjustment, but…"

When she heard the sound of tearing she stopped and looked up, just in time to see her daughter unfolding her letter and catching a glimpse of the crest as the envelope was set aside. She let out a shriek and immediately jerked it sharply out of Alazne's hand.

"Mummy, wait, that's _mine_!" cried Alazne, trying to get her letter back.

"Just let me have a _look_, Alazne," said Mrs. Lumihee, looking at the letter and keeping her daughter at bay. Within seconds, her face had gone from pale to nearly sick.

"Oh…Oh _lord_…" she gasped.

"What? Mummy, give it back, I want to read it! It's mine!" Alazne cried, her curiosity now peaked.

"It's nothing…j-just eat your food, Alazne," whimpered Mrs. Lumihee, looking as if she might faint and shoving the letter back into its envelope.

Alazne didn't move.

"I WANT MY LETTER!" she shouted.

"NO! NOW JUST TAKE YOUR FOOD TO YOUR ROOM ALAZNE, I MEAN IT!" her mother shrieked, surprising Alazne, who had rarely heard her mother raise her voice. She grabbed her bowl and left the kitchen only to hear the door shut behind her, which worried her even more. With the exception of the bedrooms and bathroom, there were no closed doors or secrets between the two of them. She set the bowl down and listened at the keyhole to hear something that set her on high alert and only made her want that letter even more…her mother was talking to herself.

"Oh lord," Mrs. Lumihee was saying in a shaky, frightened voice. "how on earth did they find out where we live? Where she _sleeps_? They must have had someone find us…I can't imagine they would know any other way…What should I do? Should I write back and tell them that I want her to have nothing to do with them…?"

Alazne could see her tiny, bare feet darting across the floor as she paced in the kitchen. Finally, they stopped.

"No," she said to herself. "No, I'll ignore it. If they don't get an answer they'll think it's a mistake, and…yes, that's what I'll do. I won't have it!"

That evening when she got back from work, Mrs. Lumihee did something she tried very hard not to do; she burst into Alazne's room unannounced.

"Can I have my letter now?" said Alazne as soon as she entered, ignoring the invasion of privacy. "Who wrote it?"

"No one. It was a mistake," said Mrs. Lumihee shortly. "I tore it up."

"No! Mummy, how could you do that, it was not a mistake! I saw how you acted, and it had my bedroom on it!" said Alazne, distraught.

"ENOUGH!" yelled her mother, making the already upset Alazne start to cry. She quickly realized her mistake and hurried to her, petting her hair and whispering apologies. When she had calmed down, Mrs. Lumihee gave her that guilty look again, making Alazne's stomach turn nervously.

"What…?" she asked wearily.

"Look, I…I'm sorry but…I think you should stay in the attic for a while with your books and things."

"What? Why!" said Alazne, shocked.

"It won't be for long, I promise," reasoned Mrs. Lumihee, "but it's not up for debate. Gather what you need."

The attic was about twice the size of Alazne's bedroom, but half of it was already occupied by all of Alazne's magical items, since her mother had the same wizard who installed the hatch for the owl post make the room undetectable by magical and Muggle means. However, space wasn't the problem. The problem was the room was twice as hot as the second floor and incredibly stuffy. However, seeing her mother's distress and paranoia Alazne moved what she could up into the attic and placed it on the other side, rearranging everything until she was comfortable. The area was now covered in posters ranging from a magical one of a howling werewolf to a Muggle one of a flowery field, books of every kind stacked high, one of which now served as a table for the small cable television she had had in her room, her little dresser and lamp that had sat next to her bed (which had to be emptied and refilled in order for her to carry it), and her mattress. The entire bed had been too heavy to carry, so the mattress, along with its bed sheets, blanket, and pillows, had to be set on the floor itself. There were also some odds and ends up there: the bike she never really had gotten to use, a toy broomstick, a Robot Lilliput she had broken, a Reusable Hangman, and a little blue Aviatomobile.

Alazne sighed and lay on the mattress, turning the television on and changing it to cartoons. As much as she wanted to know about that letter, she was wishing more than anything it never came.

Next morning at breakfast, both of the Lumihees were rather quiet. Alazne was still hurt and shocked. As much as she'd tried to convince her mother to let her back in her room, she still hadn't budged, and Mrs. Lumihee was being much shorter with her than usual. In fact, she had made Alazne's old room into a guest room. Mrs. Lumihee was silent, though she occasionally looked to her forlorn daughter guiltily as if she wanted to say something.

When the owl post arrived, Mrs. Lumihee, in an effort to be nicer to her daughter, went and got it. Moments later, Alazne heard a shriek and leapt out of her seat, knowing what it must mean, before running upstairs and tackling her mother, who was about to tear her letter apart again. She wrestled with her mother, trying to get the letter from her, but after a minute's confused fighting Mrs. Lumihee straightened, battered and winded but still holding the letter in hand as she kept Alazne pinned with her foot.

"Go to your room—I mean, the attic," she panted, eyes deadly serious. "_Now_."

Alazne did as she was told but paced in the attic like a restless animal. The letter writer knew she was there, in fact she had gotten a glimpse at the envelope and it even read "The Attic" instead of "The Largest Bedroom". So they would probably write again…and this time she would find out what had turned everything so sour.

Alazne stayed up all night, waiting for the cable box to read six o'clock, and when the time finally came she hurried downstairs and crept to the hatch for the owl post without turning on any of the lights.

She was going to wait for the owl post to come, and today, she would get her letter before her mother even knew the owl had come. Her heart paced with excitement as she carefully pulled the staircase down and climbed to the top—

"AH!"

Alazne jumped, nearly falling back down the stairs. Something had been at the top of the stairs, something _alive_!

There was some shuffling and the solitary light was turned on, and to Alazne's shock and horror she had stepped right on her mother. Mrs. Lumihee had slept at the top of the hatch in anticipation of her daughter's idea. She argued with Alazne for almost an hour, screaming at points so that her daughter was in tears by the time the owl came. It had several letter with it, all the same as the first that had come.

"Mummy, I—" Alazne started, but her mother had already snatched them up and tore them to shreds right in front of her.

For the first time Alazne could remember, Mrs. Lumihee didn't go to work. Instead she stayed home and nailed shut all the openings to the hatch.

"If they can't _get_ the letters to her, they'll _stop_," She muttered to herself like a madwoman.

"Mummy please…you're really scaring me, and you're being so cruel lately…"

"Oh don't you worry, sweetheart, this'll all be over soon," said Mrs. Lumihee, trying to nail in one of the small tarts Alazne had brought her.

The next day, no less than two dozen letters came for Alazne. They had been shoved into the house under the front door and whatever windows didn't completely shut.

Mrs. Lumihee stayed home again and, after shredding the letters in their blender, boarded up the doors and windows the same way she had the hatch, so now they didn't even have the _option_ of going out. She hummed "Ring Around the Rosie" and jumped whenever something creaked.

The neighbors, who Mrs. Lumihee no longer seemed to care about, watched in horror, thinking that she had gone mad. Privately Alazne agreed, and no longer cared about her letters, but wished instead they would just go away so things could be like before.

By the time a week had passed, things had gotten out of control. No less than thirty letters were now getting in the house a day, by any means necessary. One had even gotten in through the toilet in a baggie, which had caused Alazne to spend a few hours in the bathroom worriedly looking for the owl before her mother explained it had gotten in on its own. While Mrs. Lumihee shredded the letters in the blender again, her hands now too cut up to tear them by hand, Alazne managed to shove a letter outside asking whoever the letter writer was to please just leave them alone.

"Who the hell wants to talk to me _this _badly anyway…?" she asked herself privately.

Finally, it seemed like the letters had stopped. Three days passed without a single one coming in anywhere. By the fourth, Mrs. Lumihee even took the boards off the doors and windows, though she didn't even go _near_ the hatch. Alazne and her mother sat companionably in the kitchen that afternoon, Mrs. Lumihee looking tired and a bit ill, but both were smiling in relief as the nibbled the last of the non-perishables they'd been eating during their barricade.

"It looks like they finally stopped," she reminded them both, Alazne nodding in agreement. "I'm so sorry about how I've been acting, Alazne, I really am."

"It's okay, Mummy."

"I promise it's over now, and we'll move you back downstairs right after lunch, and we'll go get something special at the store," Mrs. Lumihee promised. "Things are finally back to nor—"

She was cut short when there was a sudden rumbling upstairs, followed by the undeniable sound of splintering wood. Next thing they knew, hundreds of letters poured down from upstairs, and as the two of them ran out in shock to see what had happened they realized the letters had been shoved in the hatch all that time, and the entrance had finally given out under the strain. Overcome by the need to see what was worth all this trouble, Alazne tried to grab one—

"No! NO!"

Mrs. Lumihee grabbed her daughter and, showing her surprising strength, carried her into the kitchen and shut the door behind them. They could still hear the letters pouring down from the hatch, filling the hall and striking the door at odd intervals.

"That's it," said Mrs. Lumihee tearfully, trying to keep her voice calm but obviously at the end of her rope. "We're going upstairs—and don't you dare touch any of those letters—and you're going to grab some clothes, and we're leaving. We're going away for a while so these letters will stop coming. You can bring a few books, but I want you packed in five minutes. No arguments."

Alazne didn't argue. Ten minutes later they had waded through the sea of letters and were in Mrs. Lumihee's car, heading for the highway. Alazne sniffled next to her mother in the passenger's seat, hugging her bag on her lap and accepting the occasional reassuring pet from her mother.

So they drove. And they drove. Alazne didn't ask where they were going, though she was painfully aware that a few weeks ago she would have been ecstatic at a ride with her mother. Every so often Mrs. Lumihee would take a random turn or go on a different road for a while, though she seemed to be heading for a particular destination.

"Just have to confuse 'em…" she muttered when she did this.

They didn't stop to eat or drink that day, and by nightfall Alazne had started to cry again. This was all getting to be too much, and her mother was behaving so strangely, and worst of all she didn't know where they were going or why.

When Mrs. Lumihee had finally gotten too tired to drive, she stopped at a little motel on the outskirts of a large city. They slept in the same room in a large bed with a blanket that smelled like mothballs, and there was no television. Her mother tossed and turned as Alazne faced the window and watched the headlights of the cars that passed, thinking about home and wondering what the next day would bring.

They ate a cheap breakfast in their room the next morning, consisting of dry toast and a warm drink that Alazne thought might be some kind of tea. They had just finished when the owner of the little hotel came to their room.

"Oy, is one 'o you Ms. A. Lumihee? I got about a 'undred o' these bloody things fer ya this mornin'."

The man held up one of the letters he carried in his arms so the two of them could see the address:

Ms. A. Lumihee

Room 13

Northridge Hotel

Blackpool

Alazne made a timid grab for the letter, but her mother had already taken them.

"I'll take care of them," said Mrs. Lumihee, gesturing for the man to lead the way and following him to take care of the letters.

"Mummy, can we please go home now…?" Alazne suggested softly an hour later, though Mrs. Lumihee didn't seem to hear her. She was now looking intently at the signs as they passed, and after a few more turns they were at a small house by the coast.

Mrs. Lumihee locked Alazne in the car with a gentle, "I'll be right back, Mousey," and disappeared.

It was Saturday now. If Alazne was home, she would be watching her favorite cartoons, or cuddling with her mother (who usually took Saturdays off) and reading a comic with a cup of hot cocoa. Maybe they'd even be heading to Diagon Alley to get her things for school, or talking about plans for her birthday, since it was only two weeks away now.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Mrs. Lumihee's return, and she was smiling. She was also accompanied by a man Alazne didn't recognize, but she wouldn't answer her when she asked who he was.

"I found the perfect place for us to stay for a while!" she announced, climbing into the car as the man waved and went to his own to lead the way. "Uncle Martin's going to show us the way!"

"_That's_ your brother?" Alazne said in surprise, looking closer at the man. He was a rather

chubby man with course red hair and a beard to match, and had very stern and squinty eyes.

"Of course, you've gotten letters from Uncle Martin before."

"Well yes, but I never _saw_ him…"

"Well he's the son of the people who adopted me, so of course he's not going to resemble

me, Sunshine."

They drove east for some time, the way lead by Uncle Martin, until they reached a large forest where the cars couldn't enter. They all got out and he started leading the way into the trees, the two adults occasionally stopping to gather Alazne again when she was distracted by some creature in the underbrush.

"How much farther is it?" said Alazne, a little worried they would be sleeping in some field in the middle of the forest. "And how does Uncle Martin know it?"

"Oh, your uncle sells real-estate, Alazne. This is his most remote piece, and he said we can stay in it a while since there seem to be no prospective buyers at the moment," Mrs. Lumihee explained, seeming to be in a far better mood.

The man suddenly stopped and pointed somewhere in the brush, Alazne just barely making out a small cottage. The area around it was hardly even cleared, so it was almost completely obscured from all angles by trees. No wonder no one had wanted it.

"I've already stocked it with some basic necessities, so you should be fine for a few days," said Uncle Martin gruffly. "Anything changes, you know where to find me."

"Of course, thank you again Martin," Mrs. Lumihee replied gratefully, barely concealing her glee at the well hidden dwellings.

The cottage was decent; it smelled like pine needles inside, there was a couch and a single bedroom with a dresser and a bed, the bathroom had a shower but no tub, and it had a small fireplace as well. It was smaller than home, but it had a natural feel to it that made it nicer for Alazne, and she distracted herself from the situation by exploring the surrounding woods.

The food Uncle Martin had stocked it with were the cheaper, non-perishables that the two Lumihees were used to. When Alazne came back from exploring, her mother had a fire going that made the cottage almost homey, and seemed to be boiling water for tea.

"See, it's not so bad now, is it?" Mrs. Lumihee said cheerfully.

She was in a far better mood. It seemed like here they were finally safe from the incessant letters. Alazne agreed, and the cottage and sound of tea brewing cheered her up immensely. It was like a little vacation, or a camping trip like some of the other families went on during the holidays.

However, by nightfall a storm had hit them, and the wind made all the windows of the little cottage rattle in a way that had Alazne shaking. Mrs. Lumihee found a few small blankets Uncle Martin had left for them and the two curled up with tea and one of Alazne's books on the couch, her mother reading to her to sooth both of their frayed nerves. Alazne tried not to look at the windows, where the branches of the trees she had played under now looked like snatching claws.

The storm only got worse and worse as the night went on. Curled up with her mother, who breathed softly and for the first night in weeks didn't toss and turn; Alazne stared into the dying fire. She couldn't sleep. She couldn't help but think about the letters and hope some poor owl wasn't out in this storm because of her, and wonder what the letter writer would do when the letters didn't find her.

As the night wore on, Alazne heard noises from outside like something moving through the forest, making her move close to her mother. She tried to tell herself it was just the usual animals of the forest or the storm, and tried to distract herself with images of how full their house would be with letters when they got back.

A few minutes later the noises got louder and closer, and Alazne could no longer ignore them. What kind of animal was making those angry grumbling noises, just loud enough to hear over the noise of the storm? And how big was it if she could hear the occasional crash of something as it moved closer and closer to their little cottage? Was it a bear?

Alazne tried to wake her mother, too afraid to face whatever was coming alone. She could hear it coming, hear the grumbling getting ever louder and its approach even easier to trace, it would be here any second. She shook her harder as she realized it had gotten to them, oh god it sounded like it was at their _door_, and turned to look in fear as suddenly—

CRASH!

As if on cue the door was suddenly blasted from its hinges by a blast of light, and silhouetted by the storm was a tall figure in a black cloak.


	4. Chapter 4: A Family Reunion

Mrs. Lumihee finally awoke at Alazne's shriek of terror at the appearance of the stranger and pulled her daughter to her protectively.

"Who are you?" she snarled. "What do you want?!"

The figure paused but didn't respond. Instead he moved into the cottage and, with a few mumbled words, fixed the broken door before removing the hood to his cloak and turning to them.

The stranger was tall and almost weedy looking, and had long brown hair that seemed meticulously styled and was pulled into a ponytail. His face was angular and seemed sharp, but the most striking thing was his eyes, cold and dark like the entrance to a cave or a black hole. Alazne peered at him a little from her mother's arms, the man seeming almost familiar.

The man looked around with a smug expression until his eyes landed on the teapot still hanging over the fire.

"Mallory, I want a cup of tea. Heat it up for me," he said.

Alazne let out a sharp gasp at his cold voice, realizing where she knew him from. It was the man from her dreams.

Without waiting for them to move, the man strode over on long legs to the couch and waved at the frightened women dismissively.

"Move over. And I said I wanted tea."

Mrs. Lumihee snarled in a savage way at the stranger, pulling Alazne closer protectively. The action drew his attention, and for the first time his eyes landed on the girl.

"Ah, this must be little Alazne!" said the man.

Alazne looked up at him with wide eyes and was surprised to find a smile on the man's menacing face, though it looked almost predatory.

"I've been wondering about you since I received word of your birth," he informed her. "I thought you'd look more like your mother, but I suppose that hair of yours is from that dirty _Muggle_. But those eyes! My, those must be from our blood, none but a witch could have those eyes."

Mrs. Lumihee let out an animal-like growl.

"You get out of here, now!" she said. "We don't want anything to do with you!"

"Oh, shut up, Mallory, you dirty _Squib_," said the man; he pulled something out of his pocket and flicked it towards the woman with another mumble that Alazne didn't understand, Mrs. Lumihee's eyes going blank before releasing Alazne and going to the teapot. As she moved she made a noise as if she were being choked.

Alazne watched fearfully.

"Now—Alazne," he said, his attention returning to her, "it is a pleasure to finally meet you. I know it's a bit early, but since I have missed so many of your birthdays, I think it's alright to give this to you now."

He rummaged around in his cloak a moment before pulling out something that let out a little squeak from inside his closed fist. Alazne reached for it timidly. When he placed it in her hand she discovered it was a little pink Pygmy Puff, a creature she had read about in one of her more recent books. The creature let out a pleased squeak at being released and cuddled into her hand, purring.

"I was contemplating on getting you one of the cats available at Magical Menagerie, considering your current home amongst the Muggles, but I heard that your Muggle father was allergic so I was a bit hesitant to do so until I was sure you weren't as well. The girls love these little creatures though, so I figured you would too."

"She's very cute…thank you," Alazne said, gently petting the purring pink puff, "but who are you?"

The man shot a glare at her mother, who was blinking as if dazed in the middle of making tea, but managed to soften his expression before speaking to Alazne.

"My apologies, I had forgotten you have never seen me before. I doubt your _mother,_" he spat the word out as if it were something bitter, "has any photos of me around. I'm Theodore Nott...your uncle."

As Alazne stared in open mouthed shock, Theodore gestured to her mother, who delivered his tea. He flicked the item in his hand at her and Mrs. Lumihee fell to one knee with a gasp, as if trying to catch her breath.

"You…You can't _use_ that spell…!" she gasped in horror.

"I believe I can and did, Mallory," Theodore replied nonchalantly, sipping his tea. "It's your own fault for being so difficult."

"What spell?" Alazne asked, curiosity overcoming her confusion. "Mummy, what's going on? This man said he's my uncle, but…"

"He _what?!_"

Mrs. Lumihee was on her feet, enraged.

"How _dare_ you?! HOW DARE YOU COME HERE AND ACT AS IF YOU HAVE ANY RIGHT TO SPEAK TO MY DAUGHTER?!"

Alazne moved away from the conflict with her Pygmy Puff, who was now letting out frightened, high pitched squeaks. Theodore, on the other hand, seemed unmoved.

"Could you quit howling like a wounded animal? I've had a hard time finding you, and it has left me rather drained," he said in a bored voice, taking another sip of his tea.

"How can you just sit there as if you have all the right in the world to just intrude on our lives?!"

"I believe I have every right to introduce myself to my niece."

"You lost that right the moment Father dumped me in that bloody orphanage! And you, sitting by cheering him on!"

"You mean they didn't die?" Alazne cut in. "You said that your parents died in the Second Wizarding War, and that you didn't even _have _a brother!"

Theodore laughed at the statement as Mrs. Lumihee went pale.

"Wishful thinking, huh Mallory? No, Mother died when we were young, but she was much closer with Father. He did end up perishing in the Second Wizarding War. As for siblings well…I believe I speak for myself when I say that is a load of bat droppings," he said, chuckling.

"This doesn't make any sense…if they hadn't died, why were you in an orphanage, Mummy?" Alazne piped in, everything going a little too fast for her.

"Why?" said Mrs. Lumihee softly, who had seemed shocked to hear of the death of her father. "_Why!_ You really want to know why? It's because of being how I am! Oh, the day my brother got his letter and went to…to _Hogwarts_…I couldn't wait until I turned eleven and got my own letter. I was the only one in the family who hadn't shown any signs of magic. And when my birthday came and went and there _was _no letter…beloved _Theodore_ was the first one to tell me what I was—a freak! But I wasn't a freak, Squibs came up in every family, and I just drew the wrong card. Then father figured it out too, and before I knew what had happened I was in an orphanage as 'Mallory Nutt'!"

Alazne took her mother's hand lovingly, the woman red faced with anger and crying softly. She obviously had been brooding over this for years, maybe since it had happened. Theodore yawned, setting down his empty teacup.

"Yes, that's all very _tragic_, but I imagine Alazne wants to hear a little more about my plan for her," he said.

"What _plan?_" Alazne asked.

"_What plan?!_" he hissed, coming to life and glaring Mrs. Lumihee down with his eyes alive with fury. "What do you _mean_ 'what plan'?! Merlin, I knew you hadn't read those letters, but she didn't tell you a _bloody thing?!_ Don't you even wonder about the magic side of your family?"

"I kind of thought they'd been mixed like I was, since—"

"MIXED?!"

Theodore was now on his feet, nearly shaking with rage. Mrs. Lumihee took a few steps back worriedly, Alazne pushed behind her.

"Do you mean to tell me," he growled at her. "You never told her _anything_ about her family!?"

Mrs. Lumihee swallowed but stood strong. "You stopped being _either _of our family the _moment_ you kicked me out!"

Alazne, who had asked about her family so many times over the years, poked her head out from behind her mother.

"What's my family like, then?" she asked.

"Alazne, _hush!_" Mrs. Lumihee whispered urgently.

"The girl has a right to know!" said Theodore.

"Why do you suddenly care?! She's my daughter, and you called me worse than a Mudblood! Why would you be so focused on her?!"

"Oh, I refuse to argue with you anymore," Theodore said, dismissing her with an annoyed gesture. "Alazne, you come from the pure-blooded Nott family, and I plan to incorporate you back into it."

There was silence in the cottage. Only the noises of the fading storm could be heard as the news set in.

"So what?" Alazne finally said, not seeing what the big deal was.

"_So what_?" said Theodore in surprise, sitting down on the couch and gesturing for her to join him. "So, pure-bloods are the highest witches and wizards in our world! We have a lineage of only magic, and only the most powerful and rarest gifts are in our families."

Alazne went to sit with him but was stopped by her mother, who seemed proud of her attitude on pure-bloods. Instead she pet her Pygmy Puff thoughtfully.

"Wait…then why are you bothering with me? My father was a Muggle," said Alazne.

"Yes, but despite this you have the Nott blood in you. I'm not sure what you might be called, considering your _mother_, but you undoubtedly take after our family," Theodore said, "and I fully intend to make you a full part of it again."

"And how do you intend to do that?" Mrs. Lumihee growled, pulling Alazne close again.

"I'm guessing you didn't read the letter either then," Theodore said, raising an eyebrow.

"No, I didn't."

Theodore rummaged in his cloak again, this time pulling out a wizarding photo of a boy Alazne's age. He had dark brown hair that was as wild as Theodore's was styled, and cold blue eyes that half-glared at the photographer. He smirked at the two Lumihees in a sinister way and his face was still slightly chubby with baby fat, but showed signs of having sharp, angular features when he came of age. His clothes were black and looked expensive.

"What do you think about this boy, Alazne?" Theodore asked.

Alazne looked over him again. He stuck out his tongue, making her scowl.

"He might look nice if he weren't a brat," she replied.

Theodore chuckled a little, giving the boy in the picture an affectionate look.

"Oh, I suppose he may be a little rough around the edges, but nothing the right person couldn't smooth out with time. And his appearance?"  
"I said it was ok, not bad I guess," Alazne said with a shrug. "Maybe if he wasn't looking at us like that he might be a little nicer looking. Why are you asking anyway?"

"Well, this boy is my son Duff, and I'm hoping to arrange a marriage between the two of you."

There was a moment of silence, Alazne wide-eyed in shock, before Mrs. Lumihee's furious cry made the two magic-users jump.  
"That is _disgusting_! ABSOLUTELY NOT! Are you _actually_ suggesting that my daughter marry her own _cousin_?! What on earth is _wrong_ with you?!" Mrs. Lumihee screeched, disgusted.

"Mallory, for Circe's sake could you _not_ scream like a banshee every time I speak?" said Theodore in annoyance. "If you had _ever_ paid attention to Father, you'd know it's not by any means a novel request. Many pure-bloods have interbred to keep the line pure; I'm merely tweaking the idea to keep our family from getting too widespread. Perhaps even incorporate those who could bring novel traits to our gene pool."

"How could you talk so…so _confidently_ about such a horrible idea?! It's wrong!"

"I find no problem with the idea, or else I wouldn't suggest it. This girl has both potential and our blood, so I intend to make her one of the true Nott family members again. Why would you be so against mending the bonds that Father severed?"

"First of all, you're insane. Second of all, you're only picking and choosing who will and won't be a part of the family, the same way he did!"

The comment seemed to bother Theodore, who narrowed his eyes.

"I am very different from Father. He was a follower, but I have a very different style, I have my own vision! And I will pave the way to its fruition my own way! And to begin, Alazne will become a Nott, as she should be!" Theodore yelled, his look becoming threatening.

As the two siblings argued, Alazne had set her new pet somewhere safe, and now she intervened.

"I'm sorry Uncle Theodore…but I'm not going to do that. I don't want to be stuck to someone I never met, especially my cousin, and especially when my cousin looks so cruel. I won't do it," she said firmly, staring down her uncle's furious look.  
Theodore's face flushed with anger, but to her surprise he turned to her mother.

"This is _your_ doing! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!" he cried, his attitude reminding Alazne of a child throwing a tantrum. "If she had been raised among us, she would understand! She would accept! SHE SHOULD BE HONORED!"

Mrs. Lumihee, who had instinctively shrunk back, managed to stand firm.

"You're blaming me for her not being raised in the family? It's Father's doing! Besides, she has her own mind, she can decide for herself! And she said _no!_" Mrs. Lumihee cried.

Apparently, this continued rebellion was too much for him. Theodore whipped the item from before out of his cloak, which Alazne finally recognized in the light as a wand, and raised it above his head with pure hate in his eyes. "WE'LL SEE," he roared, "IF YOU DON'T KNOW YOUR PLACE WHEN _I'M _ DONE WITH YOU!"

He brought the wand down with a vicious slice to point at her mother—Alazne realized his intent even if she didn't know what he was doing and just as he cried a third spell she didn't recognize before she jumped in front of her mother with her arms thrown out protectively. There was a sudden feeling of white hot knives driven into every inch of her skin and she let out a screech that even terrified herself with its inhuman tortured sound and both her mother and her uncle looked on in horror. She began wreathing in pain on the floor.

Her mother let out a noise like a cat with its tail stepped on and tackled her uncle, but the pain had already stopped after the man realized what he'd done. When Mallory kicked the wand away from the man's hand and rushed back to a sobbing Alazne to comfort her, shooting Theodore a look that would kill a lesser man as he got back to his feet.

Theodore retrieved his wand, not looking at the two women for a moment as he stroked his sharp chin.

"I apologize for letting my temper get out of hand," he said, his voice betraying some of his guilt, "but that honestly wasn't for you, Alazne. I meant to only remind your mother who the stronger person is, who should be ordering who around, but I suppose I had enough rage that the spell even worked on you."

He composed himself and shot the girl one last look as even her pygmy puff tried to console her.

"I suppose I might have sprung this on you too soon. Consider what I've said, and I'd appreciate it if you don't mention this to Duff when you two meet. Wouldn't want any outside feelings to affect the natural course of your relationship."

With that he gathered his cloak around himself and, without another word, disappeared again into the night.


End file.
